Ten Great Tips to Advance Your Career

There can be extreme competition out there these days when it comes to making an impression on the people who matter at work. Finding ways to impress the boss while maintaining your sanity can be difficult to say the least. While you certainly don’t want to have to work 70-hour workweeks just to get ahead, the benefits of career advancement probably won’t just fall into your lap. Most of the time, it takes hard work, dedication, and the ability to learn and adjust to changes in your work environment to get ahead in your career. Here are some tips to take into consideration.

1. Go the Extra Mile

If you’re looking to make an impression on the boss, you’re likely going to have to get out there and make it happen. Sitting at your desk and waiting for that promotion to drop out of the sky probably won’t help you. Look for extra work, projects, and things your boss might be hinting at that need to taken care of.

2. Be Proactive

Talking to your boss or managers to find out what projects need to be taken care of can give you that extra push you need toward career advancement. You can make yourself noticeable by being proactive and solving an issue before it becomes a problem that your boss has to deal with. It’s important to make sure you handle the project in the proper manner though, and ensure you receive credit for the extra time and effort.

3. Listen

It is critical that you listen while you are at work – especially to your boss or bosses. Almost every manager has a personal leadership style. While some advocate their techniques more avidly than others, it is important to pay attention to the way your managers work, the words they say, and what areas they focus their attention upon.

4. Communicate

You can use the information you have gained from your leaders to provide relevant and constructive feedback â€“ but don’t go overboard. You don’t want to offend or anger your boss by being overly critical or speaking your mind too openly.

5. Get to Know Co-workers

While you might not like all of them, co-workers can be an important part of your success in advancing within a company or organization. Co-workers can give you a hand when you’re overloaded with work, guide you in the right direction as a new employee, give you inside tips to the ways things work within your company or organization, and explain what the boss likes or dislikes when it comes to furthering your career.

6. Look to the Future

It is important to plan into the future when it comes to your career. Only taking your job a day at a time can keep you from seeing the path that lies ahead, which you must traverse in order to get ahead in your career. Like a game of chess, you often need to be thinking several moves ahead when it comes to planning how best to proceed with your career.

7. Forward Thinking

In almost every industry these days, it is important to stay up to date with regards trends and schools of thought in your industry, especially when it comes to technological advancements. Learning how to effectively use the latest computer software, understanding the latest tools, and being able to show others how to navigate the most recent upgrades, can impress your bosses and co-workers and leave you looking like the golden child.

8. Utilize Your Skills and Abilities

Understanding what it is that you do best and making sure your bosses takes notice can be a real feather in your cap. Being the go-to person when it comes to certain projects or types of work can make you stand out to your superiors and a more memorable candidate when it comes to career advancement opportunities.

9. Maintain Focus

Your path to getting ahead in your career likely won’t be fast tracked if you aren’t focused on the goals ahead and the work it will take to get you there. Realizing that your career is a marathon and not a sprint can allow you to keep your eye on the goals ahead and not burn yourself out.

10. Reward Yourself

Finally, it is important to reward yourself for your career successes. Advancing your career is typically a long, tedious, and exhausting process, and it can feel good to reward yourself for all the hard work you do.

Do you have any tips? Name your best tip for crushing it in your career in the comments.

About the Author

Kris writes on a freelance basis for Credit Card Compare, an Australian comparison website specialising in balance transfer credit cards and reward credit cards that help consumers save more money. When he isn’t writing about managing finances, he enjoys spending time with his family and reading.

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